Crime statistics: Study ranks St. George area in Top 10 safest metros in West

ST. GEORGE – The St. George metro area made it into the Top 10 in a new study ranking metro areas in the West for safety.

The study, conducted by Law Street and released in April, used the FBI’s 2013 Crime Report by metropolitan statistical area to compile a list of the Top 10 safest and Top 10 most dangerous metros in the West.

The list shows nearby California dominating the “Most Dangerous Metros in the West” list, with five California metro areas; nearer still, Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise metro area in Nevada ranked No. 5 on that list.

In stark contrast, Utah ranked with four metro areas in the Top 10 on the study’s “Safest Metros in the West” list, including St. George in fifth place – the St. George metro area was defined to include all of Washington County. Utah’s Logan ranked first with only 55 violent crimes for every 100,000 people; Provo-Orem metro area came in second, and Ogden-Clearfield metro area took eighth.

According to the list, crime rates per 100,000 people in Washington County with a population of 147,923 in 2013 were as follows:

Violent Crime: 141

Murder: 1

Rape: 39

Robbery: 12

Aggravated Assault: 89

Metropolitan Statistical Areas provide an established level of analysis for government reports and statistics, and are characterized as having an urban core with more than 50,000 people and surrounding areas that have close social and economic integration.

Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2015, all rights reserved.

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About the Author

Kimberly Scott is a lifetime resident of Southern Utah. In 2013, Kimberly joined St. George News as a vital member of its editing, reporting and administrative team. She is passionate about engaging communities through writing and is dedicated to providing complete and accurate coverage of both anticipated and breaking news.

6 Comments

This is so wrong in the last month the st.george police have been called to our complex. Domestic abuse, felon with a loaded gun, drugs and a road rage incident.the only thing they arrested the guy for a warrant. Gave a 16 year old a rifle and the bullets, then they let the 6 year old drive a rental truck that wasn’t hers without a license. I am sure there are more stories like this . The domestic abuse when multiple people heard the beating the St.George police did nothing. At least Washington police are better and not as arrogant